Three Runners Vie for $10,000 PRRO Circuit Bonus at AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4
Ridouane Harroufi, Sammy Kitwara, and Mamitu Daska
to Contend for PRRO Circuit Payout
Three runners—two men and one woman—head into Wednesday’s AJC Peachtree Road Race with a chance to add $10,000 in Professional Road Running Organization (PRRO) Circuit bonus money to the $15,000 awarded for race winners. Ridouane Harroufi became eligible to compete for the bonus by winning the men’s race at the Utica Boilermaker 15K last July, Sammy Kitwara earned eligibility with a win in the men’s race at the World’s Best 10K last February, and Mamitu Daska qualified by winning the women’s division at the Lilac Bloomsday Run on May 6th. Utica Boilermaker, World’s Best 10K, and Lilac Bloomsday were three of the events on the 2011-2012 PRRO Circuit schedule, with the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile being the fourth. Winners of PRRO Circuit events become eligible to compete for the PRRO Circuit bonus at Peachtree, which serves as the PRRO Circuit Championship each year.
Under
PRRO Circuit
rules, an athlete who wins one of the first four PRRO Circuit events, and finishes first at the PRRO Championship at the AJC Peachtree Road Race, can claim the PRRO Circuit Bonus. The bonus reset to $10,000 this season after Sammy Kitwara won last year’s prize. The bonus is split if an eligible male and female both win the Championship at Peachtree. If no eligible athlete wins, then the bonus grows by an additional $5,000 for the following season.
“With the stellar field Peachtree has every year, it won’t be easy for either Harroufi, Kitwara or Daska to prevail,” says PRRO President Don Kardong. “But their victories earlier in the PRRO season certainly show they’re capable of winning and taking home the bonus.”
“We’re thrilled to have this race within a race at the AJC Peachtree Road Race,” stated Tracey Russell, Executive Director of the Atlanta Track Club, which organizes the event. “It adds further depth and excitement to the world-class field set to toe the line on the Fourth of July.”
The 2011-2012 PRRO Circuit included the Utica Boilermaker on July 10, 2011; the World’s Best 10K in San Juan, Puerto Rico on February 26, 2012; the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile in Washington, DC on April 1, 2012; the Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K in Spokane, WA on May 6, 2012; and the upcoming PRRO Championship at the AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4, 2012.
The PRRO Circuit offers world-class competition for athletes of all nations in events shorter than the marathon distance. The circuit has shown its commitment to a drug-free sport by funding mandatory drug testing for elite athletes at all the PRRO Circuit events. The testing is carried out by the United States Anti-Doping Agency.
A summary of results from the 2011-2012 PRRO Circuit to date appears below.
2011-2012 Events and Results (to date):
Utica Boilermaker 15K, July 10, 2011, Utica, NY. Men’s winner: Ridouane Harroufi, Morocco, 43:30. Women’s winner: Alice Timbilili, Kenya, 48:40.
World’s Best 10K, February 26, 2012, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Men’s winner: Sammy Kitwara, Kenya, 28:02. Women’s winner: Vivian Cheruiyot, Kenya, 30:47.
Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile, April 1, 2012, Washington, DC.
Men’s winner: Allan Kiprono, Kenya, 45:15. Women’s winner: Jelliah Tinega, Kenya, 54:02.
Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K, May 6, 2012, Spokane, WA.
Men’s winner: Allan Kiprono, Kenya, 34:29. Women's winner: Mamitu Daska, Ethiopia, 38:26.
The AJC Peachtree Road Race (2011-2012 PRRO Championship), July 4, 2012, Atlanta, GA.
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